Summer Boy
by MidniteMasquerade
Summary: Andre has dared Jade to date Beck this summer and break his heart. As an actress, she puts up a good show for Beck. But will her true feelings for him come out, or will she shatter both their hearts in the end? Ratings might change.
1. You can bet on me

It was the end of 7th grade. Jade and Andre were having their last lunch before summer break. Over Jade's shoulder, Andre gave his friend, Beck, a small wave. Jade turned slightly to see him return the wave before sitting down at his table.

"Cat told me he likes you." Andre said.

Jade sharply turned around. "You're lying." She replied, not believing that a handsome boy like Beck would have a crush on her.

"No lie. Look he's staring at you right now." He said, giving a small point behind her. Jade turned her head to see. And it appears he was looking at her. But now his eyes were on his salad, and his cheeks were cherry red.

"He's ugly. Not my type." Jade said, trying to be casual about it.

"I never asked." Andre countered. Jade just glared at him.

"I dare you to go out with him this summer." He challenged.

"No."

"Why not? It's just a dare. You don't even have to like him."

"This sounds more like a bet than a dare." Jade eyed him suspiciously.

"Dare. Bet. Whatever. C'mon Jade, do it."

Jade glanced at Beck once more. "Fine. But only if I get to break his heart before next school year."

"Deal." Andre reached over the table to shake Jade's hand. "Winner gets $50. Loser pays up." Then the bell rang. "Better move quickly, loads of girls would love to have him as a summer toy. And you're not the only girl he has his eye on." He called as he walked away.

"Oh, I will be." Jade muttered as she threw away her lunch. She watched beck exit the cafeteria. He looked as vulnerable as a puppy. Jade began to smirk. 'Oh, this will be fun.' She thought.

AN:_ So what do you think? Did you like it, did you not? This story came to me while I was listening to the song 'Summer boy' by Jessie and the Toys Boys. I have a few things in mind for the next chapter, but I want to see what you think._

_Disclaimer: I don't own Victorious. Dan and his crew does_


	2. Call me maybe

AN:_ Hey! Thanks for reading my story, it means so much. But just to warn you, I loose inspiration easily so you guys have to keep me going. New chapter, enjoy!_

_Disclaimer: I don't own Victorious_

Jade watched Beck from behind a corner as he cleaned out his locker. She felt like she could be a super creepy stalker, or a CIA agent. She watched his olive hands as they took out books, and paper. She watched as he ripped off the pictures that were on his locker door, and were put in his pockets. Jade fell into a slight trance as she watched him; only then to be pulled out of it when someone blew hard into her ear.

She freaked out a bit and turned around swiftly to find a laughing Andre Harris behind her.

"Scared much?" he chuckled. "Looks like I'll get my $50 before the summer even starts."

"What makes you think that?" Jade replied, trying to recompose her 'bad girl' cover. But you could tell she was still recovering from the shock by the way her voice was rather squeaky.

"Don't think I didn't see you drooling over him." Andre said.

"I was not!" she defended.

"Okay Jade, what ever helps you sleep at night." He said coolly. His hands were slightly raised in mock surrender. "I'm just saying that when- I mean if- you fall for him, this whole bet is gonna backfire on you."

"Believe me, there is no way that I'm falling for that kid." Jade reassured him. Then, without even saying goodbye to Andre, Jade left him and walked over to Beck. Confidence oozed from her body as she strutted towards him. Her hair swayed back and forth. The chains on her combat boots jingled at every step; creating a beat.

"Hey, Ben." She greeted casually. Beck looked up from his locker. His eyes widened with shock. Beck has had a crush on her since the 5th grade.

"My name is Beck." He corrected nervously.

"What ever. So, how was your school year?" she asked; her eyelashes batting slightly. Sure it was an old-school trick, but it worked. Beck began to stumble on his words.

"It was, uh, I mean, uh, it , was, uh, swell." _Swell_? He mentally called himself an idiot for using such a nerdy word. Jade noticed this to. She struggled to fight the urge to roll her eyes. She hated nerds. No shocker there.

"So what are you planning to do this summer?" She continued. Beck ran his fingers through his hair, before they slid down to rub the back of his neck.

"Well I guess I'm planning to work on my acting. Chill, and hang with friends." He replied. Though he had stopped the stammering, he was having a hard time keeping the color of his cheeks under control. They were now the shade of a fire engine.

"Do you have a girlfriend?" Jade asked innocently. Although she knew he didn't have one, she found that playing coy on the romance subject was the easiest way to get the ball rolling. But Beck found this anything but easy. He was bursting out of his seams on the inside. His mind told him to keep his cool, and not to get his hopes up that Jade wanted to go out with him. But seeing that this was the girl he has saved his heart for for 2 years, it was extremely difficult.

"Uh, no. I don't hav-" But before he could finish his sentence, Jade grabbed his wrist and rolled up the sleeve of his flannel shirt. With a black ink pen, that he swore came out of nowhere, Jade made several strokes on his forearm.

"Call me sometime." She said when she was done. She capped the black pen before turning around and walking away like it never even happened. Beck looked down at his arm.

_Jade W. 764-870-9532 _ was written in italicized, loopy cursive. The bell rang, and students filed out of the hallways and into their homerooms, leaving Beck completely alone, and dazed. The places where her fingers had touched him tingled. And as clichéd as it was, he dropped everything he was holding, and ran down the hall jumping up and down; completely love drunk.

After he was done he quickly entered her number into his phone, then took a picture of it, just so he could relive the memory. He walked out of school 8 minutes early, and rode his bike home. When he got there he flopped down on the bed and sighed with content. He knew this was going to be the best summer of all.

AN: _So how did you like it? I'm not sure how I feel about it, but I would love it if you all could give me some suggestions as to what do next. I fell a writer's block coming on any moment now. Thanks _


	3. My name's Beck

AN:_ This chapter might be a bit boring because I need a fluffy filler before I bring on the good stuff._

_Disclaimer: I don't own Victorious, if I did….. There would be some serious changes._

It's been 10 days since Jade had given Beck her number. He's been counting. He decided to wait this long because he didn't want to seem desperate, especially to a girl like her. At this point, he's been up since 4 this morning thinking of ways to call her and ask her out for a date. He's been debating whether to go for 'bad boy', 'Prince charming', 'smooth player' or himself. And being up for 8 hours straight on edge hasn't been helping. He even invited some of his older, and more experienced cousins to help him out. When they got there, Beck was a complete wreck.

"Beck, calm down, eat something." said his cousin Andrew. He and his younger twin siblings Nicholas, and Natalia were practically Beck's brothers and sister. They were always there for him; when they weren't playing video games or shopping that is.

"Andy, give him a break. The little guy is nervous." Nick always stood up for Beck. Even when he knew Beck was wrong. "But, Andy is right; you need to calm down. The chick you described her as doesn't sound like the type that digs dudes who are nervous. She sounds more like the kind that wants a man who knows what he's doing." But then he always takes the side of the person he's defending you from. Weird right?

Natalia set down her phone, and walked over to him. "Here, why don't you stand in front of the mirror and act." Beck's eyebrows were raised so high, that they almost flew into his hair line. This was one distinctive trait about Nat. She wasn't very clear with directions; she typically tends to make it much more complicated than it really is. That's where Nick balanced her out. He always put things in a way that was easier to understand.

"She means stand in front of the mirror and pretend you're talking to Jade. Say the things you want her to hear." _See._

So Beck, taking that piece of advice, strolled over to the mirror and cleared his throat; preparing himself for speech. He tried to imagine that his reflection was Jade.

"Hey, my name is Beck. What's yours?" he added a wink at the end. Although it was quite charming, it was also very forced. Andy looked somewhat disgusted. Nick looked amused, and Nat just rolled her eyes.

"I'm almost positive she knows your name, and I'm certain you know hers." Nat pointed out. But then good old St. Nick came to his defense.

"Why are you and Andy always giving him a hard time? The line was adorable."

"It was not! It was tacky! Jade probably would've walked off before he could even wink!" then the two of them started bickering; causing annoyance to bubble within Beck. Andy clearly wasn't enjoying this either. So he stood up from his seat on the couch, and motioned Beck to come with him. The two of them quietly left and made their way up to Beck's room.

"Okay, clearly the mirror thing isn't working. Let's try something different." Andy suggested. "Let's focus more on your talking; not just what you say, but how you say it." Beck swears that if he closed his eyes, it would sound like his Algebra tutor talking to him. "Pretend that you're Jade, and I'm you. Think like a girl; what would you want a guy to say to you?"

Beck, surprisingly, didn't miss a beat. "You must be from the sun, 'cause you're burning hot!" It was only a joke of course; Beck didn't have the skill for pick-up lines. But the expression on Andy's face was hilarious. He looked like he was about to have a heart attack any second; leading Beck to double over with laughter. "I was kidding." He explained when his voice was steady enough to speak, but he only resulted in laughing once more.

"Let's just continue." Andy said through slightly gritted teeth.

The boys continued with speech for another 5 hours. It seemed that Beck had only gotten worse every time he spoke. Andy tried to get Beck to take a break, but he was persistent. He wanted to get this right before he talked to Jade. But honestly, at this point, Andy could care less. He couldn't have been more relieved when Beck's mom called them down for dinner.

Although Beck was absolutely famished, he stayed in his room. He tried the mirror technique once more, but it proved to be useless. So he crashed onto his bed and drifted into an uneasy sleep; hoping that he would have better luck tomorrow.


	4. 50s Palace

Beck woke up the next morning due to the sound and feeling of his grumbling stomach. He moved into a fetal position and clutched himself. Then the smell of pancakes and the calling of his name floated through the gap between the floor and his door; inviting him down to the kitchen table for breakfast. When he got down there he caught a glance of himself in the hallway mirror. A small gasp escaped from his lips as he saw his reflection. His hair was sticking up in twenty different places, dry saliva stained his face near his mouth; he looked positively wan. Even his mother was slightly horrified at his appearance. She looked at him uncertainly as she stacked pancakes on a plate he assumed was with. Carelessly combing his hair with his fingers, he crossed over to the table, and sat down.

"Beck is everything alright?" his mom asked in concern for her son.

Beck just silently ate his pancakes in response. His mother poured a large glass of orange juice which he drank down immediately. She sat down beside him; her shiny grey eyes peering at his soul.

"A girl I really liked gave me her number before school ended and I've been too scared to call her." He muttered as he poked his food. His mom just stared at him; no expression tracing her face. She later reached out a hand and tucked a strand of his hair behind his ear. She then got up from the table without excusing herself, and went upstairs. Seconds later she returned with Beck's cell phone in her hand.

"Call her." She said holding the phone out to him. Exhausted and beat, Beck took the phone and called Jade.

_On the other side of L.A…._ Jade stared at her phone as it rang. She couldn't be more annoyed that it took him this long to call.

"Hello?" she answered. Her voice was lighter than usual. She figured that Beck was into the 'Sally sunshine' type. But on the other end, Beck cringed at her cheerfulness.

"Hey, it's Beck." His voice was hoarse and tired; no luster at all. "I was wonde-" but he was cut off by the arrival of his cousins. They motioned for him to put her on hold. "Uh Jade, can you hang on a second." Then he covered the speaker with his hand. "What's up?" he asked unsurely.

"Are you talking to _her_?" Nat asked in pure shock. Beck nodded his head. "What did you say? What did _she_ say?" she asked eagerly; wanting to get every drop of information he had.

"I was just about to ask her….." he trailed off as he watched his cousins in confusion as they scrambled to his side.

"Okay, be calm, cool and collected." Andy explained carefully, as if Beck was having a panic attack. "Play it safe, but don't be too easy. If you need any help, look to us." He gestured to him and his other siblings. But Beck's mother just rolled her eyes.

"Oh please. He was doing just fine before you 3 came in." she said. Her greatest pet peeve is when things like this happen; people always believe their tactics are correct.

Nick sighed in slight defeat. "Okay, this might not be a fast food restaurant, but Beck, 'have it your way.'"

Beck took his hand off the phone and took in a deep breath. "Jade, are you still there?"

Jade scrambled to an up-right sitting position. "Yeah, I'm here."

"I was wondering if you would like to go on a date with me some time." His tone was confident yet subtle. He felt foolish when he realized that he spent all day yesterday thinking of ways to talk to her when he could've done this all along; be himself. Maybe by now they would have had their first date. They might have already had their first kiss from one another. By now, she might have even been his girlfriend. But he saved that last part for later.

On the other end, Jade was relieved that he finally asked. But she couldn't help to overlook the pang of excitement that came from her chest. She tried to shake it off but the feeling stayed. "I would love that." she answered sweetly. Being the mercenary that she is, she decided to cut the crap and get on with it. "Are we going tonight or some time later this week?"

Without thinking, Beck responded. "Tonight." When he realized what he agreed to it was too late. But as they say: 'one man's mistake is another's fortune'. Jade was beaming with pride in herself; she had him in the palm of her pale hand.

"Great. What are we doing?" she tried hard to keep her joy under control, for she had finally mastered the West family trait; manipulating people.

Beck looked unsurely towards his cousins. He put his hand over the speaker again. "Uh, a little help please." He sounded rather desperate.

"What's wrong?" Nat asked.

"We're going on a date tonight." He wasn't finished, but his cousins and mother didn't seem to notice. They were all bouncing silently; celebrating.

"That's great little man." Andy said as he ruffled Beck's already messed up hair. "You're going on your first date!" he exclaimed quietly. It took Beck a moment to figure out what he was talking about, then it sunk in.

_He was going on an actual date with Jade West._

Never once had he thought this would happen. He always assumed that he would spend the rest of his life drooling over her. He should be ecstatic, but he was far from it. He was nervous, nauseas, and panicky. He kept envisioning worst case scenarios where he farted and it stunk badly, resulting in her never talking to him again. Or when they leaned in to kiss, he burped in her face. Or maybe he would end up spilling his drink on her. What ever he thought of, it had nothing to do with the date ending well.

"What's the matter? You don't seem excited." His mother observed.

"Well where am I supposed to take her?" they looked thoughtfully into space while Beck sat there waiting for them; hoping their suggestions will be good. Then Nat snapped her fingers in the 'ah-ha!' manner.

"How about you take her to the '50s Palace'. You know, with the diner, and drive-in theatre. You love it there!" she suggested. That name brought back childhood memories for Beck. He and his family would go there every weekend during the summer. But he thought it wouldn't be cool enough for a girl like Jade.

"Uh, I don't think so." He said hesitantly. Nat looked at him like he had spoken another language.

"Why not? If you go to a place that's familiar to you, you'll be more comfortable. That way you're less likely to feel nervous and make mistakes."

Beck considered it for a moment, eventually agreeing. "Okay. I hope this works." He removed his hand from the speaker. "Hey Jade, do you know where the '50s Palace' is. You do? Great. Meet me there at 4:30 tonight, okay. Alright, bye." When he hung up, he felt a weight cascade off his shoulders. He was absolutely relieved. He glanced over at the kitchen clock. It read 12:56. Though he had plenty of time left, he dashed upstairs to get ready. He was not blowing what could be his only chance with Jade.

AN: HELP! _I need help with the next chapter. I'm not sure what should happen and I need some suggestions. I'm sorry if this chapter sucks, I wasn't feeling it when I typed it and I felt dizzy and light headed too. Please review. Thanks!_


	5. You got to keep up

When Jade hung up, she couldn't have been more excited; _not that she'll ever admit it_. Ever since she was a child, she has always wanted to go to the '50s Palace'. She's always stared longingly towards the flashing screen of the drive-in theatre, and the model 1950s cars that were parked outside, as she and her family drove by. Her parents never had time to take her, and sometimes they couldn't afford it. She promised herself that when she was older she would go there, even if she had to walk all the way there. So she got to the '50s Palace' at 3:45. She wanted to explore the whole place; the drive-in theatre, the bowling alley, the diner and dance floor.

Nearing 4:23, Jade got a call from Beck. He was on his way, but Jade hadn't figured out what angle she'll be coming from; which image she'll portray. She had tons of ideas bouncing around in her head, but only four seemed the most realistic. There was 'bright and bubbly', 'wilting flower', 'smoldering temptress', or 'bad girl pretending to be a good girl who's acting like a bad girl.' She decided the latter was the best choice. Right on time, Beck walked through the doors. He was wearing a simple T-shirt underneath a red and black plaid flannel shirt; dark blue jeans, multiple rings on his hands, and bright orange sneakers. Jade had to admit he was pretty cute, but she wasn't about dwell on that thought.

Beck was pretty nervous when he saw Jade. She was wearing a black shirt with white graphic gothic designs, black jeans and old, worn combat boots. His breath was taken away by her. Her brown hair flowed like a sea of chocolate; golden blonde strands blended with the warm chocolate to create a caramel shade. He caught the glint of something shiny on her nose. He assumed it was a piercing. Those sea blue eyes that sparkled washed a wave over him. He couldn't have been more in love with her if he tried.

With weak and buckling knees, he walked towards her. "H-hey." He stuttered. A nervous smile cracked upon his face. Jade saw that this was a hole in his fort, so she decided to make it wider. She smiled like a princess and pulled him into a hug. When she pulled away, she made sure that their faces were centimeters from each other for only moments. And like that, he was under her spell for good.

"So what are we going to do? Eat, bowl, watch a movie, maybe even….dance." that last part was quiet. She was totally working this bet, every 'innocent' word she said, Beck was hanging onto it like it was gospel.

"Uh, I was thinking maybe we could, uh, eat first." He was a nervous wreck. He wouldn't be astonished if he fainted any second now. But to his surprise, Jade seemed a lot nicer than he had expected. He had seen her be a complete gank to the teachers and students before, but now she was sweet and kind; a little too sweet and kind.

Before another word was said, Jade grabbed him and led them to a booth in the way back. She practically bounced the way there. Something definitely was not right. He tried to focus on the date, but her kindness kept bugging him.

"So, why did you choose this place, Beck?" Jade asked as she munched on a large platter of crispy fries. Beck tried his best to ignore the sweetness that was plaited within her words, but it was hard.

"Well, I guess because I used to come here as a kid a lot, and I haven't been here in a while, so what better chance to come than to come here with you." Okay so that was rather cheesy, and Beck did mentally face palm when he noticed what he had said. But it's safe to say that Jade actually thought it was cute.

"How sweet, I bet you were adorable as a kid." She cooed, then returned to her fries. They continued to make small talk for the rest of dinner; both of them cringing on the inside because of Jade's sugar sweet words. Beck was beyond disappointed, he was hoping she was going to be a lot deeper and unlike the shallow girls he had seen at school. He secretly admired her fire and flare. He loved the way she was quick with her tongue, yet graceful with her movements. He wonders now if that was just an act to get attention; an act in general. An emotion close to hate built itself within Beck.

"Why are you acting like this?" his tone was low and hard. Jade was completely caught off guard. She wasn't anticipating that he would catch on. But she figured that an excellent actor like Beck would be able to spot something like this. Thankfully her mind was trained to come up with comebacks, comments, and lies without missing a beat.

Her face turned into somewhat of a smirk then she started to applaud him. "Congrats. You're smarter than I thought. You passed." Was all she said. Beck couldn't have looked more confused than how he does now. He didn't even know he was under some type of test. But then the pieces clicked.

"So this whole thing was a fake?" he did his best to hide the tone of betrayal that rolled of the end of his words with confusion and anger.

"My sugar sweet, candy apple façade, yes. That was completely fake. This date…." She paused. She was trying to make Beck sweat bullets. She wanted to see the commitment in his eyes; the more he wanted this relationship, the sweeter it will be for Jade to see his heart shattered. "…. Would've been fake. I didn't actually think you were going to ask me tonight. But now that I see our potential, I guess… we might actually work out." A shade of light pink began to blossom on her pale cheeks. It seems that all the butterflies of this planet have migrated to Beck's stomach. He too felt his cheeks grow hot. The only difference was Beck's emotions were genuine, Jade's on the other hand were not.

_Or at least that's what she tried to tell herself._

"But, if we're going to date, you're going to have to keep up with me." She was cutting to the chase now; laying down the law. "I like my coffee black with two sugars. I don't appreciate you looking, talking, or being near other girls that are prettier than me. I would tell you the things I hate right now but we would be here all night. And I'll fill you in on everything else as we go along."

But Beck honestly didn't care. He wasn't even paying attention, he was just staring at her. Swallowing in every detail he thought was important. He didn't even notice that the employees were stacking the chairs on the table. Neither of them noticed rather honestly. Jade jumped a bit in fright when her phone began to vibrate in her pocket. It was a text from her mom saying that she's been waiting for her outside. Jade doesn't know why but she felt a small pang of disappointment originate from her chest.

"Have we actually been here for close to 8 hours?" Beck asked in disbelief as they got out from the booth. "We didn't even get a chance to bowl or watch a movie." He walked behind her as they exited. His hand was aching to put itself on the small of her back. And though she didn't want to admit it, Jade was aching for him to do it. When they got to the parking lot only two cars were there. One was identified as her mom's car, the other Jade assumed was Beck's. They somehow ended up facing each other awkwardly.

"So I guess I'll see you again." Beck shoved his hands into his pockets waiting desperately for a positive answer from her. Jade's lips formed a small smile as she nodded. So he turned away with what Jade thought was the most amazing smile she had ever seen on a boy. To avoid blushing, she turned quickly towards her mom's car and nearly twisted her ankle in the process.

On the way home, Jade's mom tried to ask her how her date went; which were all answered by one syllable words. Jade was too confused to think. She was so sure of herself that she wouldn't fall into the summer romance trap like so many other hopeless teenagers, but she felt that something changed that.

That night, she did all she could to push a frightening reality to the back of her mind;_ she might be falling for Beck Oliver._

AN: I hope this was alright. Let me know what you think. 


	6. Magic 8 Ball

The next morning, Jade woke up with a pounding in her head and an irregular rhythm beating in her heart. She wished that the emotions she felt last night had not occurred. On the nightstand beside her bed, her phone went off, ringing at a frequency that nearly shattered her eardrums. When she strained her eyes to view the caller ID in the dim early morning light, she couldn't have been happier to see who was calling.

"Cat!" Jade exclaimed in relief. She knew Cat could help her. "I need to get your opinion on something."

"What a coincidence, I need your opinion too! I'm trying to get my brother to take a bath, but he says he'll only bathe in lotion. So should I use cocoa butter or Lilac and Lavender?" Cat asked. Jade honestly didn't want to answer but Cat's brother did need to get the smell of dirty underwear off of himself.

"Cocoa butter," she replied curtly. "Now I need your help. Say that you were dared to go out with someone and then break their heart, but you end up having feelings for this person making it impossible for you to hurt them." She unknowingly had climbed off her bed and had began to pace. The speed of the words that flew out from her mouth was rapidly increasing. "And then when you do continue on with the bet and break up with the other person, later you realize that that person was 'The One' and now you have forever lost your chance to be happy." Jade took in a huge gasp for air.

She stood there panting slightly as she waited for Cat to answer. "Cat, are you still there?" she asked, for the other line was eerily quiet. After some rustling she got the response she had been waiting for.

"I'm sorry what did you want my opinion for? I was in the bathroom." Cat added a small giggle at the end of the reply that sent Jade's blood boiling.

"You've been in the bathroom the whole time I was telling you my situation? Cat!" she knew she had to be a little more gentle with her cutting words around Cat, but this time Cat rather much deserved it.

"I'm sorry, I just really had to tinkle!"

Jade face palmed herself for thinking that Cat could help out in a situation as serious as this. "Okay that's it, I'm hanging up."

"No Jade, wai-" _Beep._

She let out a miserable sigh as she flopped onto her bed. Her mind was a hot mess that needed cleaning. So she resorted to deep breathing.

_In. Out. In. Out._

But the more she did that, the more her mind began to wonder into places she didn't want it to go. She spent minutes upon minutes finding ways to keep herself busy; each minute seeming to go by slower than the last. She fiddled around with her phone and picked at her nail polish, but she couldn't get his face out of her mind. She practically began to suffocate with desperation. So she went to the one thing that could possibly help her.

The mystic Magic 8 Ball. She only used it in times of great need. Like now. After getting it out of a trunk filled with voodoo dolls, black candles, and other things that should not be identified, she found it. She kneeled and placed it on floor before her. To the best of her ability, she tried to keep her mind focused on the task at hand.

"Am I in love with Beck?" she whispered, as if she didn't want the ball to hear. With sweaty hands, she flipped the ball once and held her breath as the little cube came out of the dark blue liquid and into focus.

_Very Likely._

She sighed. "Can you just give me a clear answer?" Jade asked in frustration.

_Try Again Later._

With an eye roll and a groan, Jade chucked the ball back into the chest. Nanoseconds later, her phone began to ring. She didn't even bother checking who it was before she answered.

"Hello." It was more of a sound than an actual word.

"Hey, it's me, Beck." She felt like screaming or jumping out a window. No matter what she did he couldn't stay out of her head for very long.

"What." It wasn't a question, it was more of a snarl.

"I just wanted to say that I really enjoyed last night and I'd like to see you tonight too, if that's okay." He waited patiently for her response. But Jade's tongue was tied.

"I- uh- sure." She felt like a complete idiot.

"Great," he breathed. "Have you heard of the 'Summer Blast Off' at Venice Beach? It's new this year and my cousins and I were going, so I wanted to see if you wanted to join." Jade could almost see him with a boyish smile on the other end.

"Yeah, I can go. What time?"

"Noon."

"Cool, I'll see you then." She immediately hung up, not even letting Beck say goodbye. She needed all the time she could get to get herself together. She took another glance at the Magic 8 Ball before she decided to try it again.

"Am I in love with Beck?"

_Maybe._

And that was good enough for her.

AN: I could totally use more suggestions on what to do next. My older, smarter, awesomer (Yeah, it's a word!) sis helped me out with this chapter. Please review!

Sister's note: Heck yeah I did! Oh, I mean, "You're welcome."


	7. Baby you're a firework

Jade spent several hours trying on and ripping off clothing. She finally decided on a plain white tank top and a black and white tribal print skirt; flip flops included. She gave a small smile of satisfaction as looked into the mirror. She didn't think her 'Gears of War' bag went together particularly well but it didn't matter. She raced down stairs to grab a bite to eat.

Her mom walked into the kitchen with a large stack of bills in her hand. "Hey sweetheart." She muttered absentmindedly. She took a small glance at Jade as she sorted through the mail. "Is dad taking you somewhere?"

Jade swallowed down her sandwich. "No, I'm going on a date with Beck." Her mom set down the bills and looked at Jade, her eyebrows were cocked and a sly grin lined her face.

"You like that boy, don't you." It wasn't a question, for her mom already knew. Jade was looking down at her face to prevent her mom from seeing her face, but the bright red stood out unnaturally, almost artificially on Jade's pale face.

Jade glanced out the window to see a silver car pull up in the driveway. She hated this part, the awkward moment when her dad comes home. Her parents have had a rocky marriage for almost a year now. They would constantly fight and argue. At night, her dad would end up on the couch, while her mom slept in the king sized mattress in _their_ room alone. Jade couldn't understand why they wouldn't just divorce and get it over with.

With a business suit, tie, briefcase, and emotionless expression, Jade's dad walked through the door.

"Hello Norma, Jade." His monotone echoed slightly through the house. Her parents glared at each other for several seconds before ignoring one another once more.

"Hey dad, could you drop me off at Venice Beach. I have a date." She actually rather missed him to say the least. She hated not having him around as much; not having both of her parents around as much. It almost seemed like the older she became, the farther apart they grew. Or at least that's how it seemed

"I have work to get done, Jade. Ask your mom." He wasn't even looking at her. He was too busy fiddling around on his phone. Her mother couldn't have been more irritated.

"She's trying to spend time with you! How hard is that for you to see?" Jade's mom didn't have a happy family experience either. So she did everything she could to make sure Jade had one. But it didn't work out that way.

"I have work to do! Didn't you here me say that to her!"

"Work, what work, you get fired from your job every other day!" And this is where the fighting began. They started to through words tipped with venom at each other. Delivering blows harder than the previous one. Jade sat there bitterly, trying to eat the rest of her sandwich. But she had lost her appetite. Her normally heavy and loud sigh of aggravation was now drowned out by the heated argument.

"Fine, I'll just ride my bike." She stated, in attempt to stop the chaotic scene before her. But it proved to be useless. So she resulted in scribbling down a note and leaving without another word. She rounded to the side of the house to get her bike which was leaning against the side. She hopped on and rode the 9 mile journey.

When she got there, the streets were filled with venders selling food, expensive and unnecessary toys, and balloons. Her appetite made an appearance again when she eyed a large basket of cheese curds. She biked to a near by rack and parked her ride there. Then she suddenly felt two hands place themselves on her waist. She spun around quickly to see Beck behind her. His smile was so bright that it probably made diamonds envious of it.

"I hope I didn't scare you." His brown eyes sparkled in the afternoon light. Jade's hands started to sweat; she wiped them off discreetly on her skirt.

"No, not really." Jade decided to keep to simple words to avoid making an idiot of herself. Beck smiled once more then lead her to a group of people she assumed to be his cousins.

One, she figured to be the oldest, looked like an exact model of Beck in 10 years. The other two looked like they could be Beck's siblings. They all had the same brown eyes, good looks, and skin tone.

"Jade, these are my cousins Andrew, Nicholas, and Natalia. Guys, this is Jade." They all waved as Beck introduced them. Jade gave a small wave in return.

Nick clapped his hands together and stepped forward. "So, what are we doing first?"

"How about we eat, I'm starving." Jade suggested quickly; those cheese curds were all she had on her mind.

"Yeah let's go."

They all headed off to the food venders, wanting to fill their hungry stomachs. Jade decided to wander about by herself but Beck followed.

"Whatcha doing?" he stuffed his hands into his pockets, almost nervously. Jade couldn't help but think he was adorable.

"Just thinking on what to eat." She replied lazily. Out of the corner of her eye, she saw Beck glance behind his shoulder.

"Uh, Jade, mind if I take you someplace a little more private?" he asked. When she turned to face him she couldn't tell if it was the butterflies or hunger that was making her stomach rumble.

"S-sure." She didn't even realize what she had said. She felt like she wasn't connected to her body; it felt more like she was watching the scene from above. He smiled and took her by the hand. The made their way down the streets, making several detours for food and drinks. Then Jade finally got her cheese curds.

At an ice cream vender, a blonde 'accidently' dropped her ice cream on Beck pants.

"Oh, I'm sorry." She said. Jade mock gagged behind them as she saw how the Valley tramp was trying to throw herself at Beck. He told her several times that it was alright, but she insisted to clean it off of him. She used several napkins to wipe off the inside part of his thigh all the way to his….

"Alright Blondie, he's clean enough." Jade snapped slightly. She pushed the tight skirted girl aside and pulled Beck away. After they had cleared the area, Jade let go of him. "What the heck is the matter with you, didn't I tell you I don't appreciate crap like that!"

"She was just trying to clean off the ice cream." Beck argued. He couldn't believe how ridiculous she was acting. "It was nothing."

"She was trying to seduce you! Even a blind man could see that." Maybe she was wrong about him, maybe everyone was. He came off as such a nice guy that no one would suspect he would be a player.

Beck saw that there was no way to win this; besides he did notice the blonde was being quite flirtatious. "Can we just go; I want to be there before the fireworks start."

Jade glared at him for another minute; arms crossed over her chest. "Fine."

They continued walking for about a mile in silence. Beck was consumed with guilt when he glanced at Jade; the scowl on her face was ever present. He looked around for something to do, and then he spotted several game venders.

"Hey Jade, how good are you at basketball?" he asked. The expression on her face formed into a look of confusion.

"I'm okay I guess." She shrugged. Beck smiled then grabbed her by the hand. He dragged her over to the vender and paid the employee.

"Alright, we got 10 shots each. Ready?" he wore an ear to ear grin on his face; provoking Jade to go up against Beck's unspoken challenge. She smiled like a Cheshire cat.

"Show me what you got."

They spent another 20 minutes shooting hoops and wiping the prize shelves clean. Nearing sunset, they decided to carry on to the original plan. They walked for miles along the coast, picking up some sparklers on the way. Jade couldn't have been happier, she really liked Beck; he gave her this tingly feeling inside. They walked to a secluded part of the beach where a cave stood; jutting out of the water. Hand in hand, the hopped over and upon rocks to get to it.

When they got in there they tossed their plushy toys into one pile and leapt on it.

"We haven't really gotten to know each other." Beck pointed out. It was true, at their last date they hardly talked, and when they did talk it wasn't about them. "How about I ask a question and you answer, then you ask a question and I'll answer?"

Jade really didn't want to talk about herself; it was always a weird subject for her. But she didn't want to disappoint. "Sure."

"Okay, what is your favorite color?"

"Black….. I'm bored let's do something else." Jade answered curtly. Beck was beyond shocked but he found it rather comical; he started chuckling.

"What's so funny?" Jade wasn't used to being laughed at, most people were too scared of her to try. Her response caused Beck to laugh more with renewed force. By the time he calmed himself, he was beat red.

"You're not like most girls." His brown eyes were lit with light. Jade's heart fluttered and her cheeks burned with blush. She tried her best not to get lost in those eyes of his, but it was so hard not to. Her gaze was broken due to an explosion that occurred outside the cave, the fireworks had started; they both jumped back with fear.

"Come on." Beck pulled her out of the cave and the two of them waded in the ocean; staring at the neon colors the cracked the sky's post sunset shades. Jade felt as though tiny creatures were running across her hand. She quickly snapped her head downwards to see what was going on. Beck's olive skinned fingers slowly started to intertwine with hers. Chills trickled down her spine as she watched fingers slowly interlock.

When she looked up to Beck, he was looking right at her; he'd been like that for a while. He turned his body to face her, and then leaned in. Jade only had seconds to take in a breath and separate her lips ever so slightly before they connected with Beck's.

A burning heat sparked from within their lips and made its way through their bodies. With trembling limbs, Jade reached up to cup Beck's face as he encircled her with his arms. Jade mentally thanked him for that because it gave her support; her buckling knees threatened to give out on her any second. Beck's heart imploded within his melting chest; she turned him into liquid at the touch of her lips.

Neither of them had kissed this way before. So soft, gentle, and yet filled with immense power. The boom of the fireworks was drowned out by the adrenaline that zoomed through their veins at the speed of light. They both wished they could stay in that moment forever. But air was needed greatly so they pulled away. Their chests heaved a little as they stared into each others eyes. Beck was so numb from the kiss that he could hardly feel his phone vibrating in his pocket. He slipped it out to see that he had received a message from his cousins, asking him where they were.

"Is it time to go?" Beck realized how evident it was to hear the disappointment in her words. He sighed sadly too.

"Yeah, lets go." They went back into the cave and gathered their things before the long journey back. When they got there, venders were closing up shop, parents were carrying their sleeping children home and garbage collectors were hard at work.

"Hey, did you guys have fun?" Andy asked.

"Yes." They answered simultaneously. Blush crept into their cheeks.

"I'll see you next time Beck." Although Jade wished to stay with him longer she needed to go home to contain herself before she bursts. "Keep the prizes." She lunged at him to give him a small smooch before retreating to her bike.

Beck's cousins doubled over in silent laughter as they looked at Beck and his star struck expression. He watched her brown hair flow in the wind and florescent streetlights that had come on as she strolled away with his heart.

When Jade got home she crashed onto her bed with a content giggle bubbling from her throat. One thing she knew for sure was that she loved Beck.

They challenge was:_ how is she going to deal with that bet._

AN: _sorry I haven't updated in a while. School, homework, laziness etc. Please review. I felt like the only thing good in this chapter was the end. For those of you giving suggestions on Andre, I'm keeping those in mind for later ;) Thanks._


	8. You can bet on me too

The next morning, Jade was awakening to the ringing of the doorbell. Whoever was at the door rang it continuously until she stumbled down the stairs to open it. She didn't even bother to check who it was before she turned the knob.

"Andre, what are you doing here?" Jade did her best to brush back her hair with her fingers; she figured it looked like a rat's nest because Andre looked like he was on the verge of laughing his head off.

"I'm here to verify that your dates with Beck are going smoothly." Though his expression was straight, Jade could see a smirk threatening to make an appearance on his face. She narrowed her eyes at him in suspicion.

"Is this a trick?"

Andre put on a smile that looked eerily sly. "I'm just trying to figure you out, Jade West. That's all." He pivoted on the spot and walked away. "Bye."

Jade stood there completely dumbfounded. _And people think I should be put into the crazy house, _she thought. She tried to shake her head to clear the memory of latter events, but Andre's strange behavior was kept; clouding her mind. She hobbled back into bed in an attempt to drift sleep again, but something about the way Andre acted prevented that.

Beck jolted awake when a heavy rapping occurred upon his door. He shot up like a rocket as his mom called on him.

"Beck, you have a visitor." She heralded. Beck took the liberty of an extra 2 minutes to get ready, for he thought the visitor was Jade. He then raced down the small flight of stairs and into the living room where he expected to find her. But she was actually on the porch. In fact, the visitor wasn't Jade at all…

"Hi, I'm Andre." A boy with chocolate skin and dark hair that was styled in dreads extended a hand out to Beck. Beck felt small surges of disappointment spark through his body as he shook Andre's hand; it wasn't Jade.

"Yeah, you were in my history class during 2nd semester. I'm Beck, nice to see you again." Beck had gotten off pretty well with Andre. He helped Beck make songs to memorize the Declaration of Independence, Gettysburg Address, and U.S. Constitution.

"You too dog, so listen, word on the street says that you're dating Jade West." Andre was cornering Beck right where he wanted him. His act with Jade wasn't just some psychotic break; he wanted to psych her out. Now it was Beck's turn.

Beck's cheeks envied the color crimson. "Y-yeah we're dating I-I guess." He couldn't have been more sheepish and or embarrassed. His eyes were looking everywhere to avoid contact with Andre's. When he looked up, Andre was wearing a remorseful look on his face. He shoved his hands in his pockets and took a small step towards Beck.

"Do you really like her?" Andre asked. Beck was beyond confused, but he did nod in response. Andre sighed. "She told me she was going out with you just because she wanted to mess with you. She doesn't actually have feelings for you Beck."

Beck's jaw nearly dropped. He couldn't believe it, he was sure that Jade's feelings for him are real. He simply wouldn't take what Andre said into account. "You're lying. Jade lov- has feelings for me." There was a steel edge to his voice.

"Why would I lie to you? I hate it when a brother is getting played by his own girl. I mean sure, maybe Jade does have _some_ feelings for you, but they aren't genuine like yours." Andre was pinching himself through his jeans to keep a straight and sincere face. It's not that he's a horrible person; it's just that he wants to spice things up a bit. He actually wants Jade to fall for Beck. He figured that she should have a distraction from the things going on at home; Andre was informed on her parents' issues by her.

"Jade does lov- have feelings for me." Beck didn't want to believe what he was hearing.

"Prove it." Andre challenged. Beck thought hard on this; seizing the opportune moment, Andre blew the whistle. "She told me she was breaking up with you before next fall." He spilled.

Beck took several beats to come out with a solution. "I bet you $30 that I can make Jade fall in love with me, be my girlfriend, and not break up with me before next school year."

Andre forced with all his might to maintain a neutral expression. He sighed. "Okay, it's your wallet." Beck reached out a hand and Andre took it. He knew Beck would win this bet. He also wasn't worried about paying him because he could use $30 from the $50 Jade would end up paying him to pay Beck and keep the rest for himself. He did feel rather dirty though.

"Well, I wish you the best of luck Mr. Oliver." Andre said as he skipped of the porch and walked home. Beck stood there and watched him leave; his mind was all over the place. A faint roaring sound came from above; Beck looked up to see an airplane soaring across the vibrant blue sky. He instantly though of the song 'Airplanes' and closed his eyes.

"I wish Jade would fall in love with me." He whispered to the breeze. He opened his eyes to find that the airplane had moved on.

AN: _So how was this chapter? I felt like it was a little bit cheesy at the end. I just wanted to add this chapter just for some fluff. Heads up, Andre is not a bad guy in this part, he really just wants Jade to be happy. Could totally use some more suggestions for later. Thanks._


	9. Congratulations

Jade leaped off the staircase to retrieve the mail. Today was to be the day when she received her acceptance letter into Hollywood Arts and the summer program they offer. Just as the mailman was sauntering to the next house, Jade tore the lid of the mailbox off. Literally. Ignoring the piece of plastic that now lay at her feet; she stuck her hand into the cavern and pulled out several envelopes. She didn't have to take long to find the one she was yearning for; it's not hard to miss a brightly colored envelope with graphic designs of people dancing.

A fat grin formed on her face as she opened the letter. Her eyes scanned the parchment rapidly, catching anything that would hint her acceptance. Yet, she eventually resorted to reading rather than scanning because she felt that she was wasting time.

_Dear Jade West,_

_ We, Hollywood Arts, would like to congratulate you on your success_ _at your audition this past January. You have been accepted into Hollywood Arts._

Jade screamed at the top of her lungs as she jumped up and down. Forgetting the rest of the mail; she ran back to her house. "Mom I got in! I got in!" she exclaimed as she bolted through the door.

Her mother jumped off the kitchen stool to embrace her daughter in a hug as she beamed with pride. "That's wonderful honey! Did you get into the summer program too?" Jade pulled away to scan the letter again.

"Yes! See, right here." Jade pointed to the sentence on her paper to show her mom.

"What's all the commotion about?" her father asked as he stepped out of his study.

"I got into Hollywood Arts, daddy." She jogged over to embrace him but stopped short when she saw the discontent on his face.

"What happened to DeLaSalle and Los Angeles Prep? I thought we agreed to send you to those schools." Jade's dad crossed his arms over chest.

"Oh I didn't see the letters from those schools in the mail." Jade replied; her voice was small. Her father's eyes glanced toward the portal to the outside world.

"Well why is the rest of the mail on the ground? And the mailbox, what happened to it?" he shouted as he looked out the wide open front door. Jade couldn't control her wincing as he spoke.

"Quit yelling at her!" her mother fought back. "She just got into the most prestigious performing arts high school in California, and you can't even be happy for her!"

"Well you know what Susan; 'happy' doesn't pay the bills. Money from dancing, singing and acting comes and goes! She should be going to a school that teaches her to make money and a powerful, strong, solid business! Not a school that encourages finger-painting." Jade stood in the middle as her mother and father exchanged heavy-hitting words.

"She's 13 years-old! Does she really have to worry about money? That should be your job!" Jade's mother pointed at her husband sharply.

"Yes, that is my job but some day she has to learn to do it too! I'm not paying for her to go to some dumb school just to learn how to sing!"

"Then I'll pay for her!" her mother proclaimed; having the final word in the matter. Jade's dad turned back to his study and entered; muttering profanities under his breath as he did so. Jade and her mom stood there awkwardly. "Jade, why don't you go to your room and check the website for more information?" In translation, 'You might want to leave'. Jade did what she was told without any hesitation. Somewhere on the stairs she contracted anger; not just rage, but something more than that. She wanted to scream and cry, yell at her parents for being so blind, run away and yet run right into a pair of arms; loving arms.

But all these emotions that seethed within her came out as nothing more than the slamming of her bedroom door. She took a minute to scream into her pillow that her face landed in after she flopped down onto her bed. A few tears leaked from her eyes, but nothing else. Below her chamber complete chaos had erupted once more. Jade could tell it was another quarrel between her parents. She chose to ignore it and instead chose to acknowledge the beeping of her phone. She grabbed it from off of the nightstand and viewed her messages. Cat, Robbie and Andre had texted her about their acceptance into Hollywood Arts.

She messaged them back with congratulations and news of her own acceptance. Cat had texted her back wondering if they could video chat. Although she really didn't seem like talking to her Jade obliged. She dragged herself to her desk and opened her laptop. After several clicks she was video chatting with Cat.

"Hi, hi, hi!" Cat greeted. She was jumping on her bed and simultaneously eating a bag of gummy worms. Jade would've warned her to not do that, but she honestly wouldn't care if Cat choked (and possibly died).

"Hey Cat." No enthusiasm could be found in Jade's words at all. In the background, the sound of her parents' fighting were as clear as day. Even Cat could hear them over the sound of the metal springs in her bed that screeched as she bounced. She stopped for a moment to try and listen in on what Jade's parents were yelling.

"_You still haven't even opened the Father's Day card she made you when she was in the second grade! Why is it that you can never be satisfied with anything and everything she does?"_ no doubt that was her mom.

"_I would like to but I can't! Not when I'm working 20 hours a day 7 days a week! Besides she's rebellious and never does what she's told!" _Jade's head snapped toward the door. She couldn't believe what she was hearing. All she had ever done her whole life was follow everyone's orders and try and please people. Why can't anybody see that…?

"_Well if you don't like it why don't you just leave?" _

Cat gasped at what Mrs. West said. Jade let out a gasp of her own. Although this wasn't what she wanted Jade won't lie; she's honestly not surprised. She was actually relieved.

"_Well fine then." _her dad replied completely casual. This made Jade sick to her stomach; how can a man just walk out on his family without fighting for it? His heavy tread echoed as he made his way to the front door. He then slammed it so hard that he caused the house to shudder. All was quiet except for the loud sobs Mrs. West had contracted.

"Jadey?" Cat asked quietly. She didn't know if it was the angle Jade's head was turned or not, but Cat saw tears forming in her best friend's eyes. Jade turned her head slowly towards the screen of her laptop; Cat was right, Jade _was_ crying.

Wordlessly, Jade logged out of the video chat and closed her laptop slowly and carefully. She got up from her desk and made her way to her bathroom that didn't have any windows, and sat on the toilet seat lid. She locked the door and turned off all the lights; diving into a pool of darkness. She didn't mind that she had been swallowed whole by the lightless room; it wasn't much different from the life she lived in now.

AN: _So how do you think about this chapter? I will bring back Rex and his advice, don't worry. Suggestions, comments etc. feel free to review. _


	10. Cupcakes

Cat sat there on her bed and stared sadly at the place Jade's tear stained face had been only seconds ago. Cat nearly shed a few tears of her own. She could never get over the fact that people these days got together only to separate in the end. Just as if love was merely a way to pass the time, a trinket, a toy that could keep you occupied only for so long before you tire of it, and just an overused topic for songs. Cat, though, did admire the people that appreciated and fully understood the meaning of love. But then again, she was just a child.

Cat couldn't help but want to make Jade feel better. So she laid back upon her bed, twisting her brown hair with her index finger as she thought of all the things that could ease Jade's pain. Her brainstorming was interrupted by a loud crash that came from below. Panicked; she ran down the stairs to investigate.

"No, no, no, no!" she yelped as she had caught her brother emptying a box of Red Velvet cake mix. "Stop! You're not supposed to do tha-!" she stopped herself. She took a moment to figure out what her brother was doing. He was emptying out the cake mix into cupcake pans. That's when Cat was struck with an idea; bake Jade cupcakes.

She looked to her brother. "Do you want to help me bake cupcakes?" she asked. Her brother nodded eagerly. "Yay! But first, can you wipe the drool off your chin?"

After 3 hours of mixing baking and chasing around her brother, Cat had made at least 3 dozen cupcakes for Jade.

"Yay! We're done!" Cat exclaimed. Her brother, also elated, jumped up and down patting his head. "No, no, no! Mom said you can't do that anymore." She tried to grab and restrain his hands but he was too strong. Cat slipped and fell onto some extra cake mix that was on the floor. Her brother hollered as he ran off through the house. "Get back here!"

Seeing that chasing him would be of little use, she called for back-up.

"_Hello?_"

"Hey Robbie, can you come over and watch my brother for me?" Robbie could always find a way to calm her brother down.

"_Kay, kay."_

"Thank you!" Cat began to stack the cupcakes on a tray when the doorbell rang. She wasn't surprised as to how fast he was, he only lived 2 houses away. "It's open!"

"Hey Cat!" Robbie walked through the door with, much to Cat's displeasure, Rex.

"Hi Rex." She said flatly.

"Man why are we here helping with _that_ thing's brother? We could be out partying with my Northridge girls." He complained.

"What's that suppose to mean?" Cat couldn't tell if he was insulting her or just complaining.

"I mean, dumb brunette, that I don't want to have to deal with your freak show of a bro-" Robbie swiftly covered Rex's blabbing mouth.

"Don't listen to what he says Cat. Hey, did you dye your hair red?" Robbie pointed out that half of Cat's brown hair was now a bright powdery red. Confused and slightly panicked, she opened a drawer behind her and took out a large silver spoon to examine her flowing chocolate strands.

"Oh! My brother and I were baking cupcakes and after we were done he started acting up and I tried to hold him down but he was too strong so I fell onto some of the cake mix that had spilled onto the floor." Cat was talking so fast that Robbie and Rex could hardly understand her. And then without warning she took the tray of cupcakes and walked out the door.

"That is one strange chick." Rex stated. Robbie sighed and nodded in agreement.

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Cat had walked several miles to Jade's house, unknowingly passing Beck's. He was in the garage helping his dad with their car when Beck became aware of a familiar voice serenading to the world. He turned to see a short and sweet looking girl with a tray of cupcakes, a cute short pink dress, half red hair and big brown eyes. All of which he identified as the belongings of Cat Valentine. He set down the tools he was using and quickly ran out to meet her.

"Hey! Hey, Cat!" he called. Cat stopped singing and turned around; bewildered. When she realized it was Beck she swiftly put the cupcakes down onto the sidewalk and squealed as she ran arms wide-opened to him. Cat threw herself into his arms and he gladly returned the hug; chuckling as to how much Cat was like a puppy in a human body. After a 5 second embrace, they pulled apart.

"Omigod! How have you been Beck? Ooh! We have to find a time to catch up, it's been ages since we've seen each other! Oh! -" she started to spit words out of her mouth a record speed, so it ended up coming out as one whole word.

"Cat." Beck tried to get her to stop, but she kept talking. "Cat." He tried once more, but she would not stop blabbing about how her brother dove into the neighbor's window to avoid getting tagged. _"Cat!"_ she stopped midsentence. "Slow. Down." She was utterly confused as to what he meant until she realized all she had said and done.

"Oops." She giggled. "I did it again!" then she started to laugh like no tomorrow. "G-get it?" she stuttered between laughs. "O-o-ops I-I did it a-again?" Beck's father looked up from his work on the car to see what was going on. Beck had told him he was dating someone, but he had never met the girl. Drawing the conclusion that this was Beck's girlfriend, he left the garage to greet her.

"Hi, I'm Mr. Oliver." Cat could easily see that this was Beck's dad; they shared the same million-dollar smile. She took his outstretched hand and shook it politely. Though she was laughing like a maniac only moments earlier, Mr. Oliver was quite impressed with her. "So you must be Beck's new girlfriend." He said pleasantly.

Beck and Cat's eyes grew wide. "Oh, no, no. I'm not his girlfriend. Jade is." Cat clarified.

"Oh, my apologies. Beck, isn't Jade that girl you've had a crush on since the 5th grade?" Beck's eyes grew wider as Cat giggled; he could not believe his dad would say that in front of his friend. He would've died if his dad said that in front of Jade for that matter.

"Aww, you've had a crush on Jade since the 5th grade. How cute!" Cat squealed. Beck's cheeks turned a deep shade of red against his tan skin.

"Dad, could you not say that again, ever?" he hissed. It was more of a demand rather than a request. His father chuckled in understanding.

"Okay kid, it was nice to meet to you Cat." Mr. Oliver smiled at her and turned and made his way back to garage.

"So Cat, where are going with a large tray of cupcakes? Taking Little Red Riding Hood's job I see." he joked, pointing to her the red part of her hair.

"What's that suppose to mean?" Cat backed away from him; she couldn't believe he would ever say something so insulting. Beck was taken by surprise.

"Uh, I, j-just, never mind. Where are you heading to Cat?"

"Oh, I'm going to Jade's." she stepped towards him once more; bouncing with glee like he hadn't just 'offended' her.

"Hey, can I go to Jade's with you?" he hadn't seen Jade in ages and really wanted to. Mainly just to kiss her again.

"Sure!" Cat skipped back to the tray of cupcakes she set down and Beck followed; all the way to Jade's.

**AN:** _So this is the new chapter! Hope it was to your satisfaction. Rex's relationship advice and some heartwarming Bade moments are on the way. WHAT HAPPENED TO MY REGULAR REVIEWERS? I miss you guys! Since it's the summer, (for me anyway) I will be updating a lot more frequently. Follow me on Twitter MidniteMasquera. Love Ya'll! _

**I have a poll on my profile page if you all are interested.**


	11. I Love You

Jade was still in the bathroom when Beck and Cat arrived. Her mother had let them in. Cat brought the cupcakes into the kitchen as Mrs. West poured some beverages for her guests.

"Um, Mrs. West?" Cat squeaked, Mrs. West turned around to face her. "I-" Cat cut herself off. This was a very sensitive topic, one, she figured too sensitive to address. "Would you like some of these cupcakes?"

Jade's mom smiled, then wordlessly took one of the cupcakes off the tray. "Cat… I'm glad that Jade has a friend like you." She then bit into her cupcake. "Especially one who makes amazing cupcakes." Mrs. West winked and walked out to give Beck his lemonade. Cat just watched her in confusion; was she not upset that Mr. West had walked out on her and Jade, or was she hiding it?

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"Jade. Open the door." This was the 10th time Cat had said this within the past 45 seconds. She and Beck were outside Jade's bathroom door, rapping relentlessly. "I can't get through to her." Beck sighed and stepped up to the door.

"Jade? Jade, I know you're in there. It's me, Beck." a scoff and an unemotional chuckle seeped through the wood.

"I know it's you, idiot. I'm familiar with your voice." Snide and cocky, Jade's voice came.

"So… does that mean you'll open the door and come out?" Beck was now rocking back and forth upon the balls of his feet like a child. "Come on. Cat and I walked here to deliver you cupcakes."

"What flavor?"

"Red Velvet. Your favorite." Cat tempted. A shuffling came from the other side of the door before it snapped open. Jade's face peeked from out of the darkness. Cat held out the tray of cupcakes and Jade's pale hand came out and snatched a cupcake off the top as quick as lightning. Her hand retreated back into the bathroom before she closed the door abruptly. Within seconds she opened the door again and stepped out nonchalantly; as though nothing was going on. She walked over to the bed and sat on the edge.

"So what are you guys doing here?" she did her best to hide her red puffy eyes from them; particularly Beck. She just hoped Cat didn't the tears forming when she logged out of the video chat.

"Well I came here to see you because I ran into Cat who was going to see you." Jade gave a small nod, her head bent low, and Beck stepped closer to see her face. _Is she hiding something?_ He initially thought. They hadn't reached that stage of trust yet so anything was possible. So he thought about it; Jade is acting sullen and distant, her mom seemed… forced, and Cat's here. _Cat!_ Beck knew Cat and Jade weren't 'friends' but Cat would do anything for her. "Cat, why were you coming to see Jade?" suspicion rolling of his tongue along with his words.

Jade's blue eyes shot up; she did not want Beck finding out about her family issues. The last thing she needed was one of the coolest boys in the school to find out that the toughest cookie in the jar was clingy and broken. Jade's reputation would be ruined. "She came here to help me…" Jade's eyes darted left and right when they landed upon the acceptance letter from HA. "To help me find out more about Hollywood Arts." Beck's ears perked at the mention of that school.

"You got into HA? I got in too."

"I didn't know you wanted to go to Hollywood Arts." Jade never knew Beck had some kind of talent.

"Yeah, I wrote the spring play. You got the lead right? In 'An England Summer'." That was when Beck realized he had to get with Jade. She effortlessly spoke with a raw emotion; if he didn't know it was a play, he would have thought that this was real life. Jade, however, thought that her performance was horrible. She spoke her lines a few seconds late, nearly missed her cues, and several times said someone else's line.

_But the truth was, she never gave herself enough credit._ She thinks she's either horrible or not good enough. Her father's discouraging words did not help the case either.

Beck and Jade continued to chat about their future plans in high school. Cat, every now and then, would give her input or commented on something that reminded her of her brother. But she could easily see that they weren't paying any attention to her, she snuck out; leaving her cupcakes for Jade.

"So Jade, are you doing the summer program this year, or next year?" Jade had nearly forgotten about that; with everything that's happened though, the thought of HA's summer program brings a painful sting with the memory of the argument between her parents.

"Uh, I actually never got around to that." She kept her eyes down because she feared tears would form. But (to her convenience) Beck wasn't looking. He was currently sitting at her desk with her laptop opened up to the Hollywood Arts website. "What are you doing?" Jade shot up and off the bed like a rocket; soaring to Beck. She tried to swiftly shut the laptop, but he quicker.

He slipped out of her reach and dived into a nearby chair. Which was actually a bad choice since now he was cornered by her. She charged at him and Beck only had second to set down the laptop to avoid damage before she pounced on him. He got kneed in the stomach but he was laughing idiotically, so it really didn't matter.

Jade threw several weak punches at his arm because she really didn't want to hurt him, and couldn't help smiling and laughing herself. She somehow ended up sitting upon his lap; taking a minute to catch her breath. She rested her head in the crook of Beck's neck. She was welcomed by the light scent of cologne, the heat of his body, and the softness of his skin. She did all she could to keep the butterflies from escaping her throat.

Little did she know, Beck was feeling the exact same way. The tank top she was wearing exposed her pale, silky, beautiful arms. All he wanted to do was stroke them ever so gently. And after some serious discussion within his head, he decided to do it.

He slowly brought his hand to her shoulder and worked his way down. His touch was feather light; ticklish; tracing invisible lines upon her. He heard Jade's breath hitch every so often, he felt goose bumps arise from her porcelain skin, he felt her shudder against him. His hand crawled its way to her shoulder and beyond. Beck's gentle hand pushed aside her silky chestnut locks to again access and dance on top of her neck. He pulled away to get a better look at her face; a true work of art.

He could spend the rest of his life memorizing her. The contour of her brow, the length of her lashes, the bridge of her nose, but most of all those lips. He had never seen a more gorgeous pair. Plump and soft, sweet like vanilla, magical too. He couldn't stop staring at them. Jade inhaled softly as his finger found their way to her lips. He caressed them like gold.

Although Jade loved the way he was touching her right now, she would've loved it even more if his lips were on hers. "Beck are you going to kiss me or not?" she snapped impatiently. Beck couldn't help but chuckle; she was too adorable when she was mad. "It's not funny!" but this only made him laugh more.

"You want to kiss?" he smirked as he leaned in closer to her. "Let's kiss." When they connected, his mind went back to that day on the beach when they had kissed beneath the fireworks. The spark was as present as ever; intensifying as their lips moved in unison. They started out slow like the ocean on a calm day, only to progress to a raging storm; passion pouring out from them both.

Their hands clawed at one another's body; desperately searching for an anchor to hold them down as the warm sensation of pure bliss swept through. After what seemed like forever, the good kind, they parted for air. They were panting lightly in amazement. The adrenaline rush they received was at the magnitude of a rollercoaster.

They leaned in once more when Jade's bedroom door flew open. Bursting in came Cat. "I'm back! I thought you guys would be missing my company! What are yo-" Cat's brown eyes widened as she witnessed Jade sitting upon Beck. Their hair was messy and their clothes were stretched and slightly out of place; lips puffy and chests heaving.

"I'm sorry!" she shrieked. She slapped her hand over her virgin eyes and closed the door. "Tell me when you're decent!" she called through the door. But they were already ahead of her. Both were straightening out hair and clothes.

"I should go." Beck was beyond embarrassed. His cheeks were a blazing red.

"Yeah you should. It's getting late." But really it was only 2:48 pm. "So, um, bye." Jade's legs were shaking. Beck nodded awkwardly before they stood in silence. But they couldn't help themselves. They practically leapt into each other's arms to kiss; urgent and fiery.

"Are you guys done yet?" innocence; pure innocence brought back their attention and they separated once more.

Beck took an extra cupcake before heading towards the door. He turned to see her one last time before he left. "I love you." His voice was low yet perfectly clear. Jade's eyes enlarged with shock.

"W-what did you just say?" he looked back at her confused until he realized what had slipped from his mouth.

"I-I, nothing!" and he took off, nearly knocking Cat down. Jade ran out the door after him.

"Wait! Beck!" by the time she got to the front door, he was already a block away.

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Jade paced back and forth within her room. The time was 11:34 pm, and there was someone she desperately wanted to call. She stared down at her phone in her hand; finally deciding to do it, she dialed the last person she expected to call for this situation.

"_Well, well, well. What can I do for you, oh wicked witch?"_

"Hey Rex, I need your help." As weird as this may be, Rex was probably the sanest most logical person there was. "Okay so say if a girl was dared by her friend to date this boy and break up with him, but she didn't want to because he was really good to her, but she didn't want to lose the bet either. What should this said 'she' do?"

"_When you say 'she', 'friend', and 'boy', you mean Andre, Beck, and you right?"_

"…H-how did you know that?" for sure Andre would have kept this on the DL.

"_How I know that is not important. What is, however, is that you should listen to what you're heart says. It knows what it wants, let it lead you."_ This is precisely why she had called Rex.

"Okay, thanks." _Beep._ She sighed heavily and set down her phone.

That night, as she laid in bed, she thought of how the rest of the summer would go. In particular, with Beck. The scene in which he told her he loved her was looped in her memory; his voice sending her to sleep.

AN:_ Whew! My fingers have lost weight typing this! So there it is, some adorkable Bade, and Rex's advice is back in action. If you haven't voted for my poll on my profile, do that now. I know that some of these characters are a little OOC, but hey, it's Fanfiction! HOPE YOU ENJOYED THIS CHAPTER! Don't forget to follow me on Twitter MidniteMasquera._

_P.S. When I first discovered Fanfic, before I had an account, there was this really beautiful story on Beck and Jade that I can't find! It was about Beck going away to Paris to shoot a few movies for 4 years, and its Jade's perspective on it, she counts the days and she cheats on Beck with Andre because she's lonely or whatever. Can you guys help me?_


	12. California Dream Boy

Andre sat in his music studio (He refuses to call it his basement with a piano and amateur recording machine) writing a song for the Preliminary Vocal technique class for HA. He decided to do a mash up of some of his favorite songs. As he scrolled through his PearPod the doorbell to his front door rang. He heard his mom answer it, then two sets of footsteps made their way down to his musical domain.

"Andre." His mom knocked on the door. "You have company." Andre got up and crossed to the door. As he approached, on the other side he could hear his mom talking. "I'm not sure why he's taking so long. Perhaps he's putting on some pants on, sometimes likes to write music in his underwear."

Andre couldn't believe his mom had told his company that. He jumped to the door and snapped it open; nearly ripping it from the hinges. "Mom! Why would you tell them that?" he felt the heat creeping to his cheeks and ears.

"Well you were taking so long so I thought that she would probably want to know why." Andre brought his hand to his face and pinched the bridge of his nose to prevent a potential migraine.

"Don't worry, sometimes my brother likes to do his homework naked on the dining room table with his butt sticking up in the air." Andre's head snapped up and he craned his neck to see who was behind his mom. Petite, dressed in colorful attire, and short even in heels stood Cat.

"Hey Cat. What are you doing here?"

"You guys have a cat? Where?" Cat spun around looking for anything that had a fury body and a tail. Mrs. Harris threw Andre a confused look, but he gave no response other than the shake of his head so she walked around Cat and retreated to sanity of upstairs.

"Cat… Cat…_ Cat!"_ her brown eyes finally turned back to him; confused. "We don't have a cat." He said slowly; hoping she understood what he was implying. But she stared at him in confusion. "Never mind. So, what are you doing here?"

"Well I was going to get some eggs so I can make my brother this omelet that I learned in cooking school, its super delicious, it has onions and spinach and- did I tell you this one -". Words flew out of her mouth at 120 miles per hour.

"_Cat!"_

"Whatie?" she looked slightly upset that he interrupted.

Andre brought his hands to his head to massage his throbbing temples. "Just tell me what you're doing here. I got a song to write."

"For the HA summer program?"

"Yeah, so if you- what are you doing?" Cat cut past him and entered his studio. She absentmindedly played a few keys on his piano as she looked around.

"Nice basement." Andre closed his eyes in irritation while Cat played around with his instruments.

_It's not a basement_, he thought to himself.

"Hey Andre, did you know Jade and Beck are dating?" his dreads swayed as his head snapped up.

"No I didn't actually." So far, Andre was winning on both ends. And especially now that people know about it, they'll call the couple 'cute' and 'adorable', encouraging them to continue with their relationship. "Are they official?"

"It looked that way yesterday." Cat sat herself at his desk and read his song lyrics.

"What happened yesterday?" Andre was having a hard time keeping himself in control; he did all he could to keep the curiosity, and excitement from embedding themselves within his words.

"Well, I went to deliver cupcakes to Jade and I saw Beck on the way so he joined me. When we got there they weren't paying any attention to me so I left but then I thought, 'Oh! What if they miss me? What if they think I magically disappeared and that J.K. Rowling was right about magic and that it exists, then they would call the cops and the news channels and then my brother will go crazy that I'm missing.' So then I decided to go back but when I opened the door… they were…" Cat's face started to turn a cherry red. "… they were doing…_ it_."

Andre's eyes nearly fell from their sockets, he never thought that either of them were that type. Particularly Beck. "Are you sure that's what they were doing, 'cause, well, it doesn't seem like something they would do."

Cat's face still retained its fiery color, but a little more muted. "No I'm positive they were having a full out make-out session."

Andre stared at her for a minute. "Wait, so they were just making out? They weren't taking it to, uh, faze 3?"

"Just making out." Andre gave a small chuckle. Not at the fact that Cat found the idea of making out as bad as faze 3, but because her blood red face was so cute.

"You know Cat, that color looks good on you." Cat's heart fluttered a little; she had never been this flattered before.

"Oh! Maybe I should dye my hair this color then!" Cat leapt up from where she was sitting and took Andre by the wrist. "Come on, let's go to the store and get some hair dye!"

"Wait! Cat I got to fini-"

"Come on!" she cut him off and continued to drag Andre up the stairs and out of his house.

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Jade was still laying in bed though it was 12 in the afternoon. She couldn't bring herself to leave after yesterday's events. She was still looping Beck's words within her head. _'I love you.'_ Had he meant it? Had he expected her to say the same? Had he expected this to turn out like some sappy teenage novel?

She thought about if Cat hadn't come in, and he had said it then. Would they have gone farther? Would she have let him take her? Was he a womanizer?

From what she had heard about him he was a pure gentleman. Opening the doors for ladies, carrying their stack of more than 15 textbooks from the library, saving them from arrogant assholes, and so on and so forth. But doesn't mean he wasn't capable of doing the opposite. Maybe he had done those things just for show so that if he ever wanted a girlfriend he had a crowd of adoring fangirls to choose from.

The idea of Beck with another girl simply left Jade seething. But the idea that he would simply be using the girl for who knows what, left her disgusted. But so far he hasn't proved to be a complete jerk, but it also doesn't mean he isn't.

Jade rolled over onto her stomach and groaned loudly into her pillow. _Why is this so hard?_ She asked herself. _Why can't I trust that he's as good as he seems?_

Her thoughts we interrupted by the soft ringing of her phone. She groaned again and rolled over to the nightstand groped around blindly; too lazy to even open her eyes. However they did crack open slightly to view the caller ID. Turns out that it was a text.

_Hey Jadey! Can you come to the drugstore and help me pick out a color to dye my hair?_

_Xoxo Cat!_

She really didn't want to, but then again she didn't want to stay here with her thoughts; who knows where they'll take her.

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Jade made her way to the back of the drugstore where the hair products were. She could tell she was in the right place when she overheard Cat complaining about what color to choose and which one looks better on her. When she turned the corner she came upon the unlikely sight of Cat and Andre very seriously looking at the red hair dye section.

"Jadey! Good you're here! Which color looks better, Cherry Wood or Strawberry chocolate?" if Jade hadn't been so distraught with her thoughts she would have told cat off for calling her Jadey. She figured that she should at least help Cat with her 'issues'.

"Neither. They look kind of dark, almost like a reddish brown, go lighter." Cat pursed her lips and turned back to the shelves.

"Here Cat, how about Red Velvet?" Andre stood on the farthest end of the aisle holding a box that even Jade thought was a rather attractive color.

Cat bounced and ran to Andre, embracing him in a quick hug before pulling taking the box. "It's perfect! Thanks Andre." She then turned right around and nearly knocked Jade over as she ran past her.

"Cat! Watch it!"

"Where are you going?" they called after the blazing brunette.

"To pay!" she shouted back. Seconds after she ran around the corner she came back. "Phooey, I don't have any money." She felt around in her pockets.

"Here I'll pay." Andre reached into his pocket and pulled out a 20. "How much does it cost?"

Cat's hand flew down and latched it onto Andre's wrist; adding on to the bruise she had made earlier. "I don't care! Let's go!" she pulled the boy who was twice as big as her towards the cash register. "You too Jadey." She called over her shoulder.

But Jade wasn't paying attention; once again she was lost in thought when some little kid ran into her legs. "Hey!" she lost her balance and fell back.

Seconds before her butt was sure to hit the ground, a pair of saving arms hooked themselves under her shoulders and caught her. She let out a sigh of relief but then quickly took it back when she saw pair of hands that saved her were large and tan. She groaned inwardly as her rescuing knight helped her to her feet.

"Are you okay?"

Jade frowned; this was not the voice she expected to hear. It was deeper, smoother and definitely not Beck's. She turned around to face a pair of roaring blue eyes, rather than the glowing brown she was accustomed to. Honey Blonde hair, extremely white teeth, a tall form and well defined muscles that resided within sun bathed skin greeted her as well.

Talk about California dream boy.

"Sorry about that. My little brother can get pretty restless when he eats ice cream." He gave her a smile that strangely sent butterflies soaring down her throat.

"It's okay. Uh, thanks for catching my fall." Jade could feel heat rising in her cheeks, but she felt wrong about it. Before she could dwell on her actions any longer he started to speak again.

"Well I should go and, uh, find him."

"Yeah, totally." _Totally?_ What was she, some bimbo from The Valley?

"Cool. Well, see you next _fall_." He joked, laughing to himself as he walked away. When he looked back to see her reaction, she was utterly confused.

Sad to say, it took Jade a while to figure out what he meant. When she did, her face was the color of Cat's new hair dye. "Ha-ha, yeah I get it." She laughed awkwardly. Not wanting to be embarrassed any longer she turned around and headed out the store.

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As soon as she arrived home she flopped down onto her couch. She was completely wrapped up in that boy she met today. There was no denying he was cute and charming. His whole existence was too perfect to be real.

Her mind was swimming with images of the 2 of them embracing each other. Images of her running her fingers through his silky brown hair. Wait, didn't he have blonde hair?

A feeling a nausea swept over her when she realized she was fantasying about another boy while she was dating Beck. Jade stopped all images and sat straight up. She was disgusted with herself. And to think that less than an hour ago she was accusing Beck of being the player.

But she actually wasn't a player considering that she wasn't dating the other dude. Or is it still considered cheating since her mind wasn't completely faithful to Beck? But how is she not faithful to Beck? And can't a girl find another boy other than the one she's with cute? Well of course they could, but they shouldn't get butterflies in their stomach and blush about. Or could they?

Jade clasped her hands to her head and screamed in frustration. Lately she couldn't think of anything without it turning into a full blown debate in her head.

"Honey are you okay?" Jade hadn't noticed her mom walk in through the front.

"Where were you?" her mom was wearing a suit and blazer, not her normal stay-at-home-mom look.

"I went to the lawyers office. Where were you? Dad came by to pick up his things and he said the house was empty." _Dad_. That word sent an unexplainable sting to Jade's ears.

"I was at the drugstore." She crossed her arms and put her feet on the couch. Her mom sighed and moved over to the couch. Jade put her feet down so her mom could sit next to her.

"Honey, the next few months aren't going to be easy for any of us, but we're going to get through it okay." Though her moms words were comforting a firm with assurance her green eyes told a different story; fear and frail hope.

The question was, what was she fearing and what was leaving her with very little hope?

AN:_So here is the new chapter. I really apologize for taking so long. I had so many things to do, so many people to kill and too many things to destroy. Plus I had a lack of inspiration. And on top of that, I'm working on a new story, it should be coming out soon._

_In this chapter I added some Candre in it because I do ship them more than Cabbie. Don't get me wrong, I like Cabbie but Candre is really cute to me. In the next chapter I think I'm going to focus a little more on Beck and start a love Hexagon. Not a triangle, but a hexagon. I hope you guys like it. _

_OC HELP! Alright now we got the description of the cutie that Jade met and he will be a reoccurring character, so what should his __name__ and__ back-story __be? _


	13. Confusion and Anacondas

Beck was lying in bed wide awake. The early morning light began to seep through his blinds as he pondered. His slip-up at Jade's house a few days ago was too haunting. He hadn't mean to say it. Or had he?

He wasn't sure if he even knew what love was. The look on her face after, he had told her that he loved, her scared him. Her face looked confused, and maybe a little guilty. He rolled over onto his side when his laptop caught his eye. He got out of bed to pick it up before bringing it back to the tangled sheets he had laid in.

After a few clicks, he was watching the spring play he had wrote. "'An England Summer', staring Jade West and Xavier Ross" the announcers voice came through his speakers.

He sat there watching the 3 hour long play. Whenever Jade was on the stage, she was all he could look at. Her costume looked beautiful on her. Her lines were said clean, sharp, and smooth. Though his thoughts were constantly on her, his heart wasn't entirely there yet.

Starving, Beck got out of bed once more and went to his kitchen for breakfast. When he got there, he was startled to see his mom already drinking her coffee; a sign that meant she had already finished her morning meal.

"Mom? What are you doing down here already? It's barely 6." Beck glanced at the clock. It read 5:48 am.

His mom sighed. "I couldn't sleep. It was just one of those nights." She rubbed her aging eyes.

"Well, join the club. I know a friend who'll make buttons and stickers." He was pouring out his cereal into a bowl. Now that he thought about it, Cat knew how to make really cute buttons. In fact he found Cat to be very cute. Very cute indeed…

"Are you going to eat all of that?" Beck snapped away from his thoughts at his mother's voice and looked down at his bowl. It was overflowing with cornflakes.

Hastily he cleaned up his mess and put the extra back into the box. As he yawned, he unknowingly took out the water instead of milk and poured in into his bowl. When he took a spoonful and rammed it into his mouth, his face contorted into a look of disgust.

"This milk is horrible!" he bent over the sink to spit his cereal out. "It tastes like water."

"That's because it is water." His mom was biting her lip to keep from laughing when she saw the look on his face after he peered into the bowl.

Beck groaned in irritation. Nothing seemed to going right lately.

He dumped his bowl into the sink and sat down next to his mom; laying his head down in defeat. His mom gave him a small smile as she stroked his hair.

"Hey mom, when did you know you were in love with dad?" Beck was not only curious, but he needed closure for his feelings for Jade. His mom stopped stroking his hair as she thought on how to answer this simply.

"Well… I guess when I realized that no matter what the circumstances were, no matter how many people stood in our way, and no matter how many other people my heart had given itself up to, I wanted to be with your father."

Beck pondered. _No matter how many other people my heart had given itself up to?_ "Are you saying you were in love with other people while you were in love with dad?"

Mrs. Oliver thought carefully on her next choice of words. "Your heart has no limit of people it can love. Yes there is 'the one', and that is the person you will spend the rest of your life with and never stop loving, but that doesn't mean they're the only person you ever love."

This was not what Beck had wanted to hear. He wanted to hear some lovey dovey sappy romantic typical mom speech about how 'your first love will be your one and only', and how 'your heart will always find its way back.' Or something to that effect. Not how you can be in love with another person or other people throughout your lifetime.

He has already started to doubt his feelings for Jade, and not even 5 minutes ago he started thinking about Cat in a way he never thought he could. It wasn't that Cat wasn't attractive, it was just weird for him to think of her that way. She was like his little sister.

"Beck? Is there something wrong? Perhaps with you and Jade?" Mrs. Oliver's dazzling grey eyes were filled with concern and understanding.

"Lately Jade and I have been becoming closer, but… now my feelings are all over the place about her, about us, about why I'm even doing this; dating her I mean."

"Why are you dating her? Isn't it because you've had a crush on her for some time?"

"Yes and I'm glad I'm dating her but… sometimes we overlap and… I don't know what I'm saying." He laid his head back down unto the table; trying his best to keep it from throbbing so early in the day.

His mother looked down at him with pursed lips; _what to do, what to do._ "Perhaps we can invite her for breakfast. Rekindle the romance."

Beck's snapped up. Breakfast, with her, with his family, particularly his cousins. He could just see all hell breaking loose. His mom and or dad telling embarrassing stories about him. His cousins winking and making fun of him. _Hell no. Hell no._

"Uh, I don't think that's such a good idea mom. Maybe Jade and I can go out for breakfast at a diner or something."

"Why? Why pay $30 for a cheap stack of pancakes and side of slimy eggs when you can have a great, not to mention free, home-styled breakfast." She got up from her seat to put away her coffee mug.

"Because that means we don't have to eat with you." Though he muttered under his breath, his mom heard him loud and clear.

"Don't get smart with me mister." She walked back to the table to give Beck a slap on the back of his head.

"Ow!" he rubbed his throbbing cranium. "I think you broke my skull."

"I will if I hear any of those smart-ass comebacks."

"Then you probably wouldn't approve too much of Jade. Smart-ass comebacks is all she is." He wasn't just teasing, he was also telling the truth really. His mom sighed and put the box of pancake mix she took out back.

"If you really don't want her to join us for breakfast then fine."

A pair of tiny footsteps made their way down the stairs. "Not want who to join us for breakfast?" Beck's little brother rubbed his shiny grey eyes that were identical to his mom's.

"Beck's girlfriend." She replied simply.

"Mom!"

"What? Don't get all upset. It's early morning, he's probably not going to remember by this afternoon." His mom poured a bowl of cereal for his little brother Ryan; which he instantly devoured after the milk was poured and a spoon was handed to him.

"Beck… why don't you want your girlfriend to come over?" small chunks and splatters of milk came out of Ryan's mouth. "Is she hot?"

Beck reached a hand out and smacked Ryan on the back of his head. "This is exactly why I don't want her over." Ryan glared at him as he rubbed the back of skull.

"Well is she hot, that's really all I want to know."

"Yes, she's hot, okay." He really didn't want to talk more about Jade. He was so confused; he wanted to see her, but then he didn't. He wanted to hold her, but then the thought of touching her made him wince.

He didn't know where all this confusion even came from. He had always wanted Jade. Very badly too. For crying out loud he fantasized about making love to her! Why is it that _now_ he doubts what he feels.

And speaking feelings, he felt rather aroused. His mind a little farther than he wanted; he started to think about all the times he had thought about taking her. He was probably one of the biggest victims of getting boners during class. Especially when she would wear the skirt Beck favored so much; it stopped less than halfway along her thighs, giving him a nice view of her 'cookies' when she went up the stairs. Not to mention her pair of skintight black short-shorties that caused him to place every book he had on his lap went she went up to give a class report.

_Too bad he didn't have any of those books right now_. Ryan, who was sitting right next to him noticed the 'stick' that had 'magically' appeared within Beck's pajama pants."Beck, what's that?"

Beck snapped out of his thoughts and looked down to his lap. His face grew a deep shade of red and he was instantly embarrassed; sporting an 'anaconda' when your mom is in the room and someone is sitting right next to you… yeah, not cool.

"I, uh, got to go." He shot right out of his chair and ran up the stairs; hunching over slightly to deemphasize the look of his… friend.

"What's gotten into him?" his mom almost burned the eggs she was making as she stared at him in wonder.

"He had a stick in his pants."

AN: _Did you guys think you were going to read about the love hexagon today? Well it will be revealed in good time! So to keep your minds wondering, when you review, make your predictions as to who will have the hots for who._

_I wanted to add a little lust in this chapter because it happened to be one of those days for me. (We all get them.) Beck 14 so, yeah. I'm probably going to divide the love hexagon into 3 parts._

_So enjoy!_


	14. The blues were bluer

Beck's head laid against the window of his mom's car as she drove him to Hollywood Arts for his first day of the summer program. He knew didn't have to worry about seeing Jade, she wasn't attending this year. But he knew Andre was coming.

In his mind he repeated the same words over and over again. _Do not think about Jade today. Do not think about Jade today._ He had waited months to come to this school and he was going to do all he could to make this day perfect; despite the events that took place earlier this morning.

The skies were cloudy and they shielded the sun until his mom's minivan rolled into the parking lot. The gray skies were no more, the sun came out, magnifying the bright paint that was everywhere. Beck's breath became shallow as he took in the sight. It was like straight out of a movie; not the stupid sappy one though. He saw older students waving at him as they drove by, just like they had done with the other students; most of which enthusiastically returned the wave, while others jumped into the backseat to avoid embarrassment.

"Well this looks exciting. Too bad I'm not a teenager." His mom was equally amazed as to how impressive the school seemed.

"Yeah. Oh, there's Andre." It appears that Andre just arrived too. Beck's mom dropped him off near the front.

"Have a good day baby." She reached over and wrapped her arm around him, pulling him close so that she could kiss his cheek, but he pulled away quickly.

"Mom! Not here!" though she didn't kiss him he wiped his cheek anyway. His mother rolled her eyes as she retracted her arm.

"Fine, have a good day baby." Her son exited the car to join his friend as she drove off.

"What's up dog?" Beck and Andre clasped hands and pulled each other in for a less than 3 second man-hug. "So how have been?"

"I've been good. You?"

"Well other than what happened yesterday, I'm fine." Andre rubbed his wrist; for a small little girl, Cat sure knew how to leave a good bruise.

"What happened to you? Did you sprain your wrist or something?" Beck leaned in closer to Andre, gingerly grasping his arm to inspect the damage. Andre caught a whiff of Beck's scent; it was spicy and exotic, yet cool and crisp. Andre leaned in a little closer to Beck and lightly sniffed his hair and he was instantly intoxicated. He felt his knees wobbling as he stood so close to Beck. He could feel the tan boy next to him radiate so much body heat.

Suddenly a boulder was dropped within Andre's stomach. Was he… attracted to Beck? A nauseating panic swept over him;_ no, no, no, no, no, he was not suppose to be attracted to Beck, Jade was. Jade. Who was a girl. Girls are suppose to be attracted to boys, not boys be attracted to boys._

Andre's hands sweated with fear. He knew he had to shake the feeling though.

"No, Cat showed up to my house yesterday and then, well, we ended up going to the drugstore to buy her some red hair dye. You wouldn't believe the death grip that little girl has." He chuckled. Beck returned a humorous smile.

"Maybe she thinks you'll go away, leave her. Maybe she has a crush on you." Beck playfully nudged at him, adding a wink to the mix. Andre almost snorted.

"Yeah, I highly doubt it." Their conversation was cut off by a man who they assumed to be the principal.

"Good day future Hollywood Arts students, and welcome. My name is Principal Ikner, and I am so delighted to have you all here. Hopefully you all will enjoy your experience here today. We are going to divide you all into several groups, then later on today we will separate you guys into even smaller and individual groups so you can receive hands on experience.

In every group is an upperclassman who will be your leader and may or may not be your individual leader. So, they'll call your name out and if you will so kindly join them then we can get the show on the road. Leaders, take it away." The older students stood in front of the principal with a sheet of paper in their hands. There were about 20 leaders or so, which was necessary considering there were over 400 kids this year alone.

It took a while before Andre and Beck were both called into the same group. They almost didn't see their leader because he was standing relatively far away from everyone else. But they managed. It appeared that they were the last people to join the group. They stood on their tiptoes trying to peer above the crowd of students who were all freakishly taller than them.

"Forget this." Andre muttered. He resorted to squeezing between everyone to get a better view as their leader talked; Beck following suit. Finally they got to a point in the crowd where he and Beck could see quite clearly. Very clearly indeed…

Beck was almost blinded by his leader's extremely white teeth as he smiled. His skin was exceptionally tan; causing Beck to wonder if it was fake or not. He was slightly older no doubt; honey blonde hair dripped with sweetness in the blazing sunlight. He was also a lot more muscular too.

"Hi, my name is Jameson and I'll be your leader this summer." Immediately, the girls started giggling like they were getting licked by a puppy. "So as you heard the principal say for some of you I'll be your individual leader, for some I won't. Before we go in, are there any questions?" instantly a brunette in the front shot her hand into the air.

"What's your number and are you single?" all the other girls giggled. Jameson's cheeks flared a blazing crimson. He brought his bulky tan hand to rub the back of his neck.

"Uh.. well I am single, but I can't give out my number. Try again in a few years ladies, I'm going to be a junior." The females before him began to pout; some of them cursing under their breath, and others actually crying.

Andre shook his head in disgust. "Why are girls so damn emotional?" Beck nodded in agreement; that was one of the reasons that he was attracted to Jade. She didn't seem as hormonal as all the other girls in the school. But then again, he wasn't supposed to be thinking of Jade today.

"Well if that's all for now, shall we continue inside." Jameson turned and lead his group through the front doors of Hollywood Arts. As soon as they passed the threshold, a great gasp erupted. The inside was even more spectacular than the website had depicted.

The reds painted on the wall were redder, the blues were bluer, the same went for the greens and yellows. Each of them looking too perfect to exist in nature, yet so natural at the same time.

"Man, I can't wait to go to school here." Andre's eyes were instantly attached to the locker and their many designs.

Beck was so speechless he almost forgot to respond. "I just can't wait to get started with the classes."

AN: _So, can you guys guess as to who has the hots for who so far. I'm scrapping my idea for having the love hexagon be put into 3 parts, I'm just going to work it into the story as I go along. Sorry for being so slow. It's these damn Olympics; hard to keep up with, hard to keep from watching._

_WARNING: Slash pairings will come and go, no flames during that time please._

_Enjoy!_


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